Claire Cares
by momewrathsway
Summary: After a talk with Hurly, Charlie realizes that he isn't realy invisable, and decides to go back and be seen.


Claire Cares

"Hey dude" Hurly greeted, spotting Charlie a few feet away. It was a greeting Charlie knew to well. At times, he wondered if Hurly knew any other ones. It didn't matter. He needed a good "hey dude" right now. It meant that he still existed, that the island hadn't forgotten about him. at least, not yet.

"Hey" Charlie replied, looking up in surprise. "What are you doing way out here?" Hurly questioned, trying to sound casual. Charlie's hopes lowered a bit. He was hoping Hurly came out to talk to him, comfort him. But instead, he just happened to be walking by and was too nice of a guy to just pretend Charlie didn't exist.

Oh well, he'd been alone out in the jungle for three days, If Hurly was going to talk to him, he was definitely going to take advantage. "Hiding, I guess" Charlie answered bluntly, no longer attempting to defend himself. "Why?" Hurly questioned, shooting him a confused look. Charlie shot him one right back.

"Didn't you hear? I'm piratically wanted on the beach. I'm surprised they didn't put me in one of those little bamboo jails you see on bloody cartoons" Charlie explained with a scoff. Hurly chuckled in amusement. Charlie smiled to himself. It felt good to smile, even if it was at his own sarcasm.

"I don't see why its such a big deal" Hurly noted, taking a seat on a near by rock. Charlie looked a bit taken by surprise. Either Hurly had gone nuts, or the two of them were the only one's on the island that were completely sane. Charlie sighed. "I can't blame them. No one wants to be around a junkie, right?" Charlie noted, shrugging slightly.

"Sure they do. Lots of people do. That's why musicians do drugs, I think. Cause they think it makes people want to be around them. I don't really think you need to do them, but if you do, who cares?" Hurly explained, doing the best he could to be comforting. "Claire cares" Charlie confirmed, feeling a rush of guilt at the mention of her name.

"Yeah she dose" Hurly confirmed, in agreement. "But that's not a bad thing" He added, with a shrug. Charlie raised an eye brow in his direction. "She cares because she likes you" Hurly explained, insistently. "She used to like me. Not any more" Charlie corrected in a low grumble. Hurly sighed.

"Well, yeah, she's definitely pissed. But its not like its impossible to fix" Hurly noted, reassuringly. "How can I fix it?" Charlie questioned, sounding every intrigued. "Tell her the truth, what ever it is. Your not a bad person, dude. You just need to remind her" Hurly explained. Charlie smiled slightly, he might just have a point.

"Thanks" Charlie nodded, feeling slightly better about himself. About the whole situation. "Any time dude" Hurly assured, and pushed himself to his feet. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to use the tree" He proclaimed, and marched off into the jungle. Charlie laughed and shook his head, waiting a second or two before he got up and got his crap together.

He unzipped the duffle bag he'd carried with him and piled in any of dirty cloths he'd left lying around, along with some fruit and empty water bottles. Once he was packed, he headed back to the beach.

He felt fine until he made it to the edge of the jungle, where the trees meet the sand, where the safe, comforting shadows meet the bare, exposed light of the beach. It was terrifying. He'd have to walk out there, all eyes on him, all judging. He wanted to throw up. But instead, he remained strong, took a deep, deep breath, and marched on.

He kept his head low as he stepped into the sun light, careful not to move to far from the trees. The first to notice him were Jin and Sun, who had the closet shelter to the jungle. They both looked up, but said nothing. Neither did he. He walked on.

The more people he passed, the more uncomfortable he felt. Everyone was looking, it wasn't just paranoia. They were all starring, all knowing, all judging. St Peter didn't have shit on them. He could feel their eyes burning wholes in his back as he walked away. Finally, looking at the sand began to drive him nuts, and he lifted his eyes.

Claire's meet his instantly, even if she was a good two yards away. She was standing at their shelter, well, her shelter know, with Aaron in her arms. She stared at him for a moment, her expression blank. He couldn't breath. He couldn't tell what she was thinking. He'd stopped walking without even realizing it.

Aaron looked at him too, and smiled when he recognized the familiar face. Charlie wanted to smile back, but worried it might upset Claire, so he looked at the ground again. He took a deep breath, preparing himself continue. When he looked up again, he was surprised to see Claire approaching.

"Where have you been?" She asked, sounding slightly worried as she looked him over. "Jungle" Charlie answered with a minor shrug, not having any other answer to give her. Claire looked down for a moment, then back at him again. "You...you should have came back sooner" Claire noted in a voice that was barely audible. Charlie looked surprised. He didn't know how to respond, so Claire continued.

"Locke told me what you did. How you through the drugs in the fire. How you quit" Claire explained, seeming to have a hard time looking at him. Charlie nodded. "And he told me that...that he counted the bags from the statue and none of them were missing, and that none had been opened" She continued, having trouble getting the words out.

"So, you should have came back sooner. You should have told me yourself, so I wouldn't have had to spend three days on this island alone" She explained finally, her voice cracking as tears brimmed in her eyes. Charlie let out a sigh of relief. For a moment he hesitated, but the sight of her crying overwhelmed him. Without worrying about how she might react, he dropped his bag and put his arms around her.

After a moment, Claire hugged him back, and buried her face into his shirt. By now, they had attracted an audience. Charlie wondered if they knew it was going to happen. It felt like they were in a movie, he was surprised they didn't clap. He didn't care, though. All that mattered right now was him and Claire. Mostly just Claire. He cared about her way more then he could ever care about himself. He loved her.

Charlie kissed the top of her head, completely ignoring those who watched them as he cradled Claire in his arms. After a while she lifted her head, laughing in embarrassment. Charlie gave her a comforting smile.

It took him a moment to realize Claire's smile had faded, and she was looking him straight in the eye, and her arms were around him, and his were around her, and if they got any closer to one other they'd be conjoined and what they were about to would become a strange form of incest. He closed his eyes, and leaned in. They kissed. Their audience clapped. They kissed any way. No one else mattered. He was kissing Claire. The world was good again.

New story, may contenuie if I get enough request.


End file.
